Slow-cooked lamb shoulder with plums and roses
Serve this fragrant, falling-off-the-bone lamb shoulder with a simple mixed green salad on the side.
You will need a food processor or a pestle and mortar to make this recipe.
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 1 large brown onion, roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp ground cardamom
- 2 tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tbsp dried rose petals
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp white pepper
For the slow-cooked lamb shoulder
- 1 lamb shoulder, on the bone
- 1 celeriac, peeled and cut into 4cm/1½in cubes
- 2 heads garlic, separated into cloves, unpeeled
- 12 red plums, 8 cut into quarters, 4 cut into wedges
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 3 tbsp dried rose petals, plus more to garnish
- 2 large cinnamon sticks
- 300ml/10fl oz white wine
- 2–4tbsp roughly chopped soft herbs (such as coriander, parsley, mint and chervil) to garnish
To serve
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 75g/2½oz mixed green salad leaves, washed
Method
For the marinade, use a food processor or a pestle or mortar to purée the marinade ingredients together to make a paste. Rub the marinade all over the lamb shoulder and leave to sit for about an hour at room temperature to allow the lamb and marinade to get acquainted!
Preheat the oven to 250C/230C Fan/Gas 9.
Place the plum wedges into a bowl, sprinkle with the sugar and set aside until later.
Put the celeriac, garlic, quartered plums, rose petals and cinnamon sticks in a large, deep roasting tray and place the marinated lamb on top. Put the tray uncovered in the centre of the oven for 30 minutes, by which time the lamb should have started to colour and brown (it may take another 10 minutes depending on the power of your oven).
Pour the wine into the tray and leave to cook for another 15 minutes, then pour in enough water to reach halfway up the lamb joint. Cover the tray with kitchen foil. Lower the oven temperature to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6 and cook for 1 hour.
Remove the roasting tray from the oven, baste the lamb with the liquid at the bottom of the tray, then re-cover and return to the oven. Reduce the heat to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4 and cook for a further hour, basting halfway through this time and again when the hour is up.
Add the reserved plum wedges and return, covered, to the oven for the final 30–45 minutes. The lamb is ready when the meat is falling off the bone.
Serve in the roasting tray, with some rose petals and chopped herbs sprinkled on top of the lamb for garnish. Mix the olive oil, red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt and pepper to make a simple salad dressing, and dress the salad leaves to serve alongside.
